OTCSS : On The Council's Secret Service
by Johnny Snowball
Summary: The Watchers' Council send Buffy to destroy the vampire SMERSH in Japan on her maiden mission as their special agent, and an assassination attempt introduces her to a halfbreed vigilante known as the Daywalker. Secret Agent Slayer Series: Episode 1.
1. The Secret Agent

Buffy is sent to destroy the Vampire SMERSH in Japan on her maiden mission and an assassination attempt against her introduces her to a half-breed vigilante known as the Daywalker.

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**- **_**On The Council's Secret Service**_** -**

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_The Secret Agent_ / 00**1**

The cruel wind rattling through metal girders at one hundred and seventy metres was a fearful thing in the dark of three in the morning. Under the deep shadow of a moonless sky the creeping sounds of city traffic filled the night air; distant voices of a sleepless world.

A figure black as the night and moving with the stealth of a prowling cat swept around the floating garden of Umeda's Sky Building on silently agile feet. Crossing swiftly to the south-side of the forty-storey landmark, the trespasser cleared the pedestrian guard rail, transversing the maintenance deck and glass barrier, and stopped at the very edge of the rooftop; perched atop the parapet.

The black panther stalked its prey in the long grass of the apartments and scrapers of Osaka City. Twenty-nine metres away & ten storeys below, the tallest blade of grass of this concrete jungle hid the prey within its steel and glass surface. It was the headquarters of _Shadō_.

At forty-storeys the night was cold and violent with high winds, yet the lower starlight bulbs of the grand city with its vibrant neons and alien Japanese symbols leant an exotic air to the atmosphere.

Buffy Summers rested on the low wall and waited for the signal. The tight thermal body suit that covered her gave some protection from the chill but did nothing for her nerves. Her gloved fingers dug into the brick as the windy currents tried to drag her from the rooftop. At her toes, a sheer and stark drop of five hundred and sixty-six feet.

Buffy was afraid. She was about to face her inaugural mission – the first of its kind in her new occupation. And, to cap it off, she had developed an unsurprising aversion to extreme heights. It was her first mission, but her second leap. And the last one killed her. She curled a lip up under her balaclava hood and recalled her training, analysing her surroundings and target.

Her perch was the famous Sky Building of Umeda in the Japanese city of Osaka. Thirty-eight floors of twin towers joined only at the uppermost two floors by the Floating Observatory with an atrium space at the centre of the bridge between towers. This was a marvel of design and engineering. Even to access the rooftop required an exposed glass elevator ride followed by an awe-inspiring glass escalator trip to the thirty-ninth floor. That was how she'd arrived here and waited until three a.m. for a good southerly wind. It was a shame she wasn't staying.

Forty-four metres below her stood her target: the pencil thin tower of the thirty-story Shadō HQ. This building, although not famous, was also a work of genius. Much to Buffy's annoyance. Even if the intruder-warning spell was not in place, there was no way to access the scraper from the ground as the lobby was a façade. The elevator there went nowhere unless you were a vampire in possession of a special code. Because the Shadō utilise a system of transport known as '_kiryōshiron_' it meant that, other than the lobby, only five floors at the centre of the tower were in use and every other floor was a concrete and metal illusion. They had no interior, no access from the ground, and none from the roof.

The kiryōshiron teleporter was a fascinating device; a mystical kind of transporter developed by a vampire scientist and warlock named Dönhoff Brotze. With two gates, one could travel to anywhere in the world. The Council's Special Ops 'Kill squad' had managed to assassinate Brotze before he could produce more than the existing two gates. He had been a top Shadō operative. She considered what she knew about Shadō. The word was an abbreviation of '_Shobun no shadō_' meaning something like 'The roadway to punishment' and their motto was 'Death to Watchers'. Shadō were an influential group of high-ranking vampires – the vampire elite – based in Japan but with operatives throughout the globe, plotting to locate and destroy the headquarters of the Watchers' Council.

It was the Council's intention to get to Shadō first.

Now Buffy had to get to the centre of that building where only one method of entry was possible and it was only good if you were a vampire and knew the code. They knew one gate was in the lobby elevator and the second gate was somewhere between the tenth and fifteenth floors. Considering it was unknown whether the code was a word, spoken or entered on a pad, a number, something genetic, or… whatever… Buffy would be using an entrance all of her own.

The fifteenth floor windows stood sixty-seven metres below the rooftop. It would require a cable of exactly that length. Something she happened to have with her. With the packs on her back and the numerous utility belts and pouches, she was stocked better than a small army. She felt like the Swiss Army Slayer.

The backpack bore a double shoot section and a separate section for the all-important crane rig. The tactical waistcoat held two dozen Daylight mines and from her belt hung a stake pouch. Really she had just the basics for the mission – all these things, plus a short-range infrared digital mapper, locator beacon, sonic boots and night goggles. And then a few spooky witch-gadgets to boot.

Buffy glanced down to the far street and shivered, wondering if there truly was no other way to do this. Though she'd already been through it more than once. Dropping from a helicopter was no good. Nothing screams 'look at us!' like a chopper in the sky. This wasn't M:I-2 or Matrix. The lobby, on the other hand, was heavily guarded by all accounts. Not only that but with four known security checks before the elevator-gate could be reached. This way was _the_ way. And she wasn't doing it without help.

In her ear she began to get the signals that meant her team was in place. She acknowledged and set her green eyes on the Shadō rooftop. The wind was a little south-easterly so she'd have to take it into account. But it was behind her so would likely carry her the distance if her Slayer strength wouldn't. She tightened the straps of her pack and took a moment to check out the panorama. The sky was black but the city shone with an urban glow so far below her it looked like a miniature set. It took her breath away. And so would that rooftop if she landed badly. Her teeth threatened to chatter as her heart upped its pace. She used the slamming pulse as fuel and coiled.

Her ear buzzed. Team ready! Go, go, go!

She leapt out into the sky – the black panther jumping from her treetop – and fell.

In the flash of a second the north-east corner of Shadō HQ raced up to meet her and she tore away the rip-cord in her left fist. Suddenly she was yanked back as a small brake-chute deployed behind her. She rose up away from the building further than expected and quickly ripped a cord in her right fist. Again gravity took her and the chute fell away into the night. She dropped to the side of the building and missed the roof.

Buffy caught the metal railing with both hands and the bolts wrenched loose. She squeaked and jumped at once to a fixed section and scaled it. Her feet met the gravel rooftop and Buffy whipped off her backpack. She discarded the used chute section and unzipped the crane rig and cable from the remaining pack. The leap had sent her nerves into shock but busying herself worked well to distract her mind from it.

She secured the pack to her back and moved with the crane rig to the centre of the north-facing side of the building. There she knelt and positioned the small motor of the rig as close to the edge as she dared. Bolts fired from the unit and secured it through the gravel to the concrete roof. A minute later and the cable was wound and braced on the crane arm a metre from the building wall. She was ready.

Buffy waited. She looked down and spotted the Yodogawa River beyond the Sky Building to the north. Looking up to the high deck of that structure Buffy couldn't believe she'd made the jump. The brake-chute was still in sight as it spiralled over the streets; caught on the winds. She noted that the wind turned northerly down by the river. That was a good thing. The chute would probably find its way onto someone's roof or balcony over the river, she considered. Maybe a couple of kilometres or so away.

She looked down the side of the building and everything seemed calm beneath her. No screams of warning sirens sounded which meant that Willow's gem – the one sewn into her suit – masked her from the intruder-detection spell. She saw clear down to the sidewalk one hundred and thirty metres below and was glad of the cable this time. She knew it would hold her yet she didn't like trusting her fate to it.

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The roar of a motorcycle drew her attention to the street. It growled as it came in from Oyodonaka and rolled up to the sidewalk across the street out of view of the entrance to Shadō HQ. The engine cut out with a rumble and a dark figure dismounted to the asphalt. She observed the rider carefully as he removed first his helmet to reveal a head of brown hair, then the overalls he wore to reveal a cream pinstriped suit. The discarded gear was swapped for a briefcase under the seat of the bike and the figure adjusted his tie before taking the case and heading for the lobby of the building beneath her. A moment later the figure disappeared inside. It was time to roll.

Buffy coupled her belt to the end of the high-tension cable and clambered over the rail. She checked the rig again and jumped. She descended on the cable to the fifteenth floor and came to an automatic stop three feet from the window of an empty room. Sixty-seven metre cable. Perfect.

The head of building security for Shadō HQ lifted his eyes when the vampire in the cream pinstriped suit walked in from the street. He watched suspiciously as the dark-haired westerner crossed to meet him at the reception desk. The slim pale man, young in appearance, smiled through his designer beard.

"Here for the meeting," said the visitor in native English.

"Sō desu ka?' the guard asked cautiously. It wasn't unusual for meetings at three a.m. at Shadō but the guard took the visitor's pass and said; "You are late, Mr. Byrne."

"Traffic," he replied elusively. The card was returned to him having been accepted by the scanner and the security guard signalled to the x-ray and arch.

Spike carried his case to the x-ray machine and rolled it through. He watched the security team there as they analysed the monitor for any hidden weapons or suspect items. Even when he handed over the fake ID card he'd had no idea whether it would work or not. But he kept his cool regardless because, fifteen storeys up, Buffy hung from a wire waiting for him to infiltrate the building.

When the case came out without a problem he was beckoned forward. He held his breath figuratively as he passed under the arch. An alarm sounded briefly and he was halted by the barrel of a pistol. As he was frisked and checked by a hand scanner, a female guard examined the results from the arch. "Roku-ju hachi. Dai joubu."

Spike made out she'd said; 'Sixty-eight' – his body temp – and; 'He's clean' or something like. His Japanese didn't rate too highly.

The hand scanner sounded when it passed over the pen tucked into his shirt pocket and the guard gave him the all-clear. Spike retrieved the briefcase and gave an appreciative nod of the head. He'd been ID'd, temperature scanned, scanned and frisked for weapons, and now faced a clear walk from security to the single bronze elevator at the end of the foyer. He walked there and didn't look back until the doors rolled shut. Spike dropped the case and took the pen from his pocket. The control panel of the lift had only one button. If he pressed it he'd be on the fifteenth floor before he had time to say 'bloody hell'. He quickly unscrewed the pen and removed the nib and ink cartridge, screwing the shell of the ballpoint back together and pocketing it. He glanced around the elaborately decorated box for a nook that would accept the cartridge. He found a gap between mirrored panels that would hold it securely.

Moments later, he stepped out from the elevator and back into the foyer; raising a few eyebrows. He handed them his briefcase. "I realised my report sheets are back in the car," he explained. "Can I leave this until I get back?"

He was allowed to go and, almost as an after-thought, he removed the pen carcass while stepping back through the arch in silence. He walked from Shadō HQ and out across the asphalt. Resisting the urge to look up, he continued to his bike. Spike threw his leg over the red Honda and sparked her up. The engine roared to life and rumbled beneath him. He loved it. Without the helmet, he set the cycle into gear and thundered his way down Oyodonaka.

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Buffy watched Spike go then faced the glass window ahead of her. Somewhere between her and the glass was a mystical barrier – yet another security measure. The same gem that masked her from the intruder detector should allow her to pass through unnoticed. But then there was the toughened glass. Buffy clapped her heels together and activated the sonic boots, feeling them begin to vibrate under her feet. It tickled and she stifled the giggles. There wasn't much time and she gently rocked herself on the cable.

When Byrne didn't return, the lobby guard felt a pang of suspicion and opened the vampire's briefcase carefully. Almost expecting to find a weapon inside, he was surprised to see it was empty. Pushing the case aside, he moved swiftly to the transporter and searched inside the box. The empty case made no sense if Byrne was legitimate but the guard was about to give up his hunch when, at the last glance around, he saw the ink cartridge of Byrne's pen wedged between two mirrored panels. He reached for his radio handset–

Buffy saw the flash below then heard the small explosion. That was the gate exterminated and, along with it, any chance of the Shadō leaders escaping. The middle five floors were now isolated completely from the world.

Buffy threw her legs back and swung them into the glass. Her boots shattered the window and she landed in a crouch inside the vacant room. She paused a second while the blast of conditioned air wrestled against natures wind. She was in a regular-looking office room with a whiteboard and a desk. She deactivated the boots then unzipped a pocket in her jacket and removed a thin metal tin. From it she poured the foul-smelling leafy contents to the blue carpet floor.

She put a finger to the tiny transmitter-receiver in her ear. "I'm in." Over the secure channel she heard Willow's distant voice utter two clear words. Buffy acknowledged and took out a pendant, placing it in the magic leaves. "Solutum animam." The pendant popped in a spark. The lights cut out and every electrical device in Shadō HQ went dead. Everything but the gear on Buffy. The wiccan EMP had worked. Buffy set the night goggles on her head and watched the black room turn green. She held up a hand to see the goggles register a body temp in the nineties. Tapping a button on her belt activated the digital mapper. Anything moving on the fifteenth floor should now be picked up by the short-range sensor.

She waited until Giles' voice broke the silence. Somewhere below in the streets of Osaka was an unmarked rental van full of high-tech gear where three special agents would be sat following her every move to offer guidance. Giles, Willow and Xander. Her team. According to Giles this entire floor was clear. No vamps. But she had to be thorough. Not one of them could survive. That was imperative.

She fixed a Daylight mine under the desk and closed the door behind her. In the hall there was the second gate and a stairwell beside an elevator and two opposite sets of doors. She looked through the glass doors at one side and smiled under her hood. The room was huge and took up most of half the scraper with windows on three sides. It was the same the other side just as the plans had indicated: two large rooms and one office. Buffy put mines over the doorways of both rooms and, forcing the doors open, put one in the corner of the elevator – just in case it was reactivated or used as a hiding place.

The Daylight mines were small and at first glance might be mistaken for some kind of smoke detectors. She took the stairwell down a level, mined it, and stopped at the fourteenth floor door. Giles came back to her. All clear. She moved out and set her mines. At the thirteenth floor she received a warning and left the stairwell carefully. Approaching one of the doors she saw a guard patrolling warily. His temp was in the sixties – vampire – and in one hand he held a walkie-talkie – ready to report the first sign of whatever trouble had arrived. He walked back toward the doors and she slipped back into the stairwell with the tip of one foot wedged in the opening to bar the door.

She unholstered Mr. Pointy as the guard came through into the hall and stepped quickly toward the opposite room. Buffy darted out and staked the vamp before he could react. He dusted and Buffy caught the radio in her hand. She paused over the dry ash and mused over the lack of her usual kickboxing pun-and-dust approach. A quick, stealthy slay. Now she felt like a secret agent. She eyed the radio and considered her options. She could take it with her and listen in or she could leave it. If it was on her when someone called through it would betray her position. Then she remembered the vamps were Japanese and she slapped herself. She hid it out of sight and went back to work.

The twelfth floor was another clear floor and she moved on to eleven. There she was forced to plant her mines while avoiding two vamps. If she dusted one she'd have to dust both or it would turn the confusion into an intruder-hunt.

She snuck across the hall and into the office first and mined it. Then she waited at the door and sweated it out, literally, while considering how she would tackle the situation. She was burning up in the tight black body suit and all she could think of was getting out of it and into a cool shower. Her hairs pricked up when she heard alien voices coming through the vamps' radios. She held the stake ready at the door. Listening carefully, she heard the door to the stairwell creak open and close again with a click.

Giles spoke in her ear. They were off her radar and she moved quickly out to mine the rooms. She was thankful for that spot of luck but now she wondered if the two vamps had gone down or up. If it was up, how long before they realised their pal upstairs was soot? She tried not to think about it as she crept down, mining the stairs as she went, and halted at the door to the tenth floor. Then Giles told her what she already knew but didn't want to hear. They were all on the tenth. Fifty-two of them.

According to Giles they were confined to one room on the west side. Probably the emergency huddle, Buffy thought. She cautiously pulled the door back, checked both ways, and slid across and into the office. Empty. Good. She put a device under the desk again and caught her breath. Now she was in trouble. Fifty-two vamps waited for her in one room. And she'd noticed one of the doors to it was fixed open.

There was no point wasting time grumbling about it, she thought. Then she realised it wasn't her thought at all – Giles was in her ear telling her he knew what she was thinking and there was no point grumbling about it. She wanted to make a snide reply but tried to remember she was a special secret agent now and not a gung-ho Slayer.

With as much speed and delicacy as she could muster she crossed into the west room and stopped. It wasn't empty. The guard spun, saw the dark shape, and lifted the radio. Buffy threw Mr. Pointy across the room and stopped breathing. The stake cut into the vamp's shirt and he let the walkie-talkie fall away. He dropped to his knees and quietly fell apart. Buffy sighed with relief and recovered her beloved stake. She holstered it. It wouldn't help her now. Not if she was spotted by fifty of them.

Crouching at the east doorway, she glanced in to see the large group talking and trying to use their cellphones. This room was different, she noticed. The windows were blacked out and it wasn't like an office room. There was equipment and maps and plans. One, she saw through her goggles, was a map of London. The Dome on the Thames was unmistakable. Had they already discovered the location of the Watchers' Council? She saw all the pins that were stuck in the map and doubted it. They were still trying to narrow it down. This room, it seemed, was where all the real Shadō plotting went down.

She pulled out the last mine she would need and looked it over. There was no way in hell she could plant it without it being seen. She wished she could somehow just activate it. But the Daylight mines were linked. Even one could blind Buffy through her closed eyelids. No. There was only one way to get this over with: sleight-of-hand with a diversion. It would have to be quick and messy.

Buffy slid the mine deep into the room and burst in loudly. All eyes turned to the dark masked figure in the doorway and she made a show of being surprised. No one saw the mine disappear under a table. She was done.

Buffy spun on her heels and bolted up the stairs. One floor, two floors. She wondered if the two vamps from earlier were above her. If so they would have been warned. They would come for her.

She reached the fifteenth floor and broke into the hallway with the stealth of a rampaging buffalo and met with the fierce and of an elbow. She fell back into the stairwell with a smack and landed face-up. One of the guards was over her with the radio at his lips. His face was in monster-mode and he flashed his fangs at her. She kicked out, knocking him into the hall, and flipped onto her feet. She bolted across the hall – spotting the other guard out the corner of her eye. She didn't stop.

Buffy slammed through the door to the office and ran at the smashed window, crushing the stinky leaves under her foot.

With her belt clip in her right hand she jumped from the building and caught the cable with the other. Buffy swung out dangerously and raised herself up to clip the cable on.

From inside, she heard the vampires scrambling up the stairs on her tail. She set the winch running and felt a rush of cool air and relief as it swept her up the side of the skyscraper and stopped her on the roof. She clambered over the rail, unhooked herself and set the crane rig to self-destruct. Without a moment's haste, she jogged across to the south rail and spun to face the north side of the building. Beyond the roof of Shadō HQ she saw nothing but the black sky that appeared dark green in her night-vision, and the high elaborate towers of Umeda Sky Building. When was she up there? A thousand years ago, it seemed.

Buffy checked her straps and got her hands into position. One, two, three, GO!

She ran across the rooftop at full tilt to the northwest corner and jumped from the building.

Her body pounded against the wind as she dropped on her stomach and raced toward the hard asphalt. Buffy cracked open the main chute and was yanked back and up. She turned down into the winds that would draw her northward and she flew by the Sky building ten storeys up. She saw with her night goggles that the Yodogawa River was just ahead and she was aiming for the bank perfectly. She caught sight of the boat under the bridge there just as she came down with a hard landing into the long grass of the riverbank.

Spike jumped from the boat and helped her fold the chute up. They hurried through the thick grass and onto the small motor boat where Buffy climbed onto the back beside the Honda cycle as Spike brought the engine to life, swinging the boat out into the river.

"Hey," he called to her, "Does this mean I can lose the beard now?"

Buffy tore the goggles off and pulled the hood away. The air on her skin felt divine. She smiled and gave him a nod. As the boat tore along the Yodogawa, Buffy took out a small device – like a cigarette lighter with a button – and pressed her thumb into it.

Far in the distance, the middle five floors of Shadō HQ exploded with light and two blocks of the City lit up like day for an instant. Then the night returned and became still.

Spike looked across at the girl as the boat cut through the choppy waters and she glanced back at him severely. "Mission accomplished," said Agent Buffy Summers.

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_**DISCLAIMER**_

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER is a Registered Trademark of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.

This is a non-profit unauthorised piece of tie-in fiction and was made for pleasure not for monetary gain.

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	2. The New Life

**- **_**On The Council's Secret Service**_** -**

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_The New Life _/ 00**2**

Buffy woke at ten a.m. in the Imperial Hotel and fell out of bed into the shower. She scrubbed and washed and let the daggers of water against her face prick her into consciousness. She dried herself steadily, brushed and flossed and threw on a complimentary pink robe. When she came out into the luxurious lounge of the hotel room Willow was stretching and yawning at the large windowed wall.

"Coffee?" Buffy asked, switching on the kettle.

Willow dragged herself across the room. "Water…" she peeped hoarsely. "I have dry-mouth." And she vanished into the bathroom.

Buffy made her coffee and stepped out onto the balcony. It was a warm morning and the sun was already beaming. She looked out over the Japanese city from the twentieth floor and could hardly believe where she was. Even after the crazy mission earlier that morning. Looking down she saw the dark Okawa River on the hotel doorstep flanked on both banks by lines of lush green trees. Nearby, cars and subway trains crossed the river over a hump-sided bridge and, looking out into the distance, a blur of brown and grey buildings – like a blanket of building blocks – blended into the high tree-wrapped mountains. This was the first time since they had arrived the previous morning that she had stopped to see where she was. She heard the shower start up and figured she had half an hour before they went for brunch. As Buffy sipped her coffee and looked out into the Japanese mountains, she couldn't help thinking back to how she'd ended up with a new life.

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It had been in October 2001 that she had found herself torn out of someplace like Heaven, landing crash-bang like a sack of dirty laundry onto the welcome mat of her old life. She'd been drowned before, stuck by her own stake, leapt to her death from a crane to save the world and her sister. But coming back from the dead – again – after being in a state of completion and contentment was the single worst event of her life. She was through. Finished. Free of pain and sorrow and worry and life. And then she was yanked back into it and crammed into her old shell of a body like a club sandwich into a peanut shell. October had passed. Then November. They had been a difficult couple of months. She was depressed, disconnected from the world and her friends. Money was a problem. Life felt so utterly pointless. Even slaying had become a sad routine – a boring and empty exercise. Then, in December when everything threatened to fall apart, it all changed.

Without warning, Quentin Travers; head of the Watchers' Council, had drifted into the Magic Box out of the blue and offered Buffy a job. The Council had gone through a rigorous self-examination process and a number of points had come to light. They had acknowledged that a Slayer is part of a line. Where one would die another would rise. When another Slayer did not rise at Buffy's second death, it was agreed that, officially, Buffy Summers was no longer the Council's Slayer. Faith was. How they would handle that situation was one problem but the Council had another. Their Special Ops Team - Collins, Weatherby and Smith – were dead. Killed in action. There was a new threat to the very existence of the Watchers' Council – the _Shadō_, with their cry of 'Death to Watchers'. It would be the Council's responsibility to bring their Slayer home. To rehabilitate Faith or find some other solution. In the meantime, seeing as Buffy was no longer in the Slayer line and in part a way to compensate or reward her for her service; dying twice and all, they wanted Buffy to replace their Special Ops Team. It would be a paid job. One promising a life of danger, travel and excitement. A reason to go on! Buffy could have screamed 'Yes!' but she had kept her cool. If she had learned one thing that year it was that, when Quentin Travers showed up at her door, it meant he was desperate. The last time she had bartered and won Giles his job back. So this time round, she had insisted she needed him and so Giles had become her Jim Phelps. And then she had really pushed the boat out and told Travers plainly that she needed her team. Xander was the heart and Willow the spirit. And so, reluctantly, The head of the Watchers' Council had put them all on the Special Ops payroll. The Secret Agent Slayer Team.

_Project: Secret Agent Slayer_ had begun the following January. A group had arrived in Sunnydale and put them all through six months of heavy-duty training. And then the secrets of the Council had been opened up to them and the chessboard set. Buffy had learned that, to the outside world, the Council was known as 'Universal Personnel'. An agency that supplied working personnel around the globe in any field of employment both long-term and temporary and that Giles' position as librarian at their old school had been secured through this dummy agency. Their mission to Japan had them under the cover of being temporary English teachers. It was all very stealthy and exciting. It was all old news to Giles, of course, but the younger trio found it all a blast. With training over, Travers – Head of X, as they now called him – had thrown them right in the deep end and sent them straight over to Japan to destroy the leaders of Shadō.

Buffy reflected on their new positions and the covert names for everything:

Station X was the London HQ of the Council. Travers was Head of X. All their missions would come from him to Station ASS (Agent Slayer Sunnydale). Giles was Head of ASS, which he was reminded of daily. To which Giles would usually reply; "Well, if I'm Head of Ass then that makes you the ass."

Buffy had the codename: Agent _Slayer_. Willow was codename: Agent _Witch_. And Xander had the codename: Agent _Lionheart_.

She considered their first mission and how perfectly it had gone. They had arrived at nine a.m. the day before flying American Airlines into Kansai International Airport to be hit by the Japanese summer humidity. A stifling sweaty heat the Japanese called 'mushi mushi'. Xander had laughed at that. Head of J had taken the train down from Tokyo to meet them and drive them the fifty-five minutes from the man-made island to their hotel in the city. He'd dropped them off and told them he'd collect them for lunch to run through the operation. Spike – stowed away in a crate in the cargo hold would arrive later. The Council hadn't liked the idea of bringing the vampire in on this mission but it couldn't be denied that the mission needed him to succeed.

Buffy, Giles, Xander and Willow had entered the hotel lobby with their luggage and felt their jaws drop onto their toes. The foyer was expansive and decorated beige and peach with small elegant troughs containing, of all things, trees. The lobby had low lit-up ceilings and was garnished gracefully with beautiful and expensive-looking furniture. Buffy didn't remember saying anything. The others had that covered.

Willow was the first to put her jaw back into working order. "Oh, my God, Buffy… this place is… it's… it's like… totally…"

"It's wow, that's what it is," Xander proclaimed. "It's uber-wow. It's Grand Prince Wow of Wowdonia. The Imperial Wow of Wowpan."

"It's serviceable," Giles had noted. "Let's get checked in, shall we?"

But Buffy had caught his look of pleasure.

"I knew there was a reason I became a Watcher," he'd whispered to her.

Buffy had whispered back; "Technically; now you're a Doer."

The staff had been the most polite and chirpy they'd ever encountered and their bags had been carried for them to their rooms: 1731 and 2015. The bellhop – a tiny, skinny, smiley young girl – had strangely taken offence when Buffy offered a tip for lugging the luggage. It seemed that prices here were all-inclusive.

Willow and Buffy had found themselves with a forty square metre twin room with bedroom, lounge and bathroom. Luxurious fruity pink striped paper covered the walls. Peach couches and real wood mahogany tables furnished the den. The floors were soft carpet with a pink hue, and a study desk stood beside the window-wall and balcony. And they had a TV the size of a baseball scoreboard. Their telephone had rung almost immediately and Willow answered to hear Xander's hyper-giddy voice. "Will, I'm moving in," he'd said. "You have any idea what we have here? Twenty-four hour room service, video-on-demand entertainment system, fitness club, barber shop, salon, shopping arcade, restaurants, a _pool_, tennis, sauna, Jacuzzi, massage, _shoeshine_, a fridge, a mini-bar! This hotel is a city all of its own. We don't ever have to leave."

Then they'd had to leave for the meeting with Head of J.

Head of J was a man named Hanada Kokuryo. A man of about forty with a severe face. Xander said he looked like a Yojimbo type. A Samurai warrior in the modern age. But his voice was absolutely the most soothing Buffy had ever known. He spoke calmly and carefully with every word and his English was very good. He ran them through their briefing, showing the building layouts and explaining the defence systems. They'd worked out the plan of attack and what tools were needed and Hanada had set about pulling everything together for them. By eight that evening they were ready to role. Willow and Xander had travelled alone to Umeda Sky Building. They'd braved the transparent outdoor elevator ride and the equally exposed escalator trip. Willow carried a bag. They made a show of walking around the rooftop, checking out the view. Then Willow had entered the Ladies restroom with the big carry-bag. She'd emptied out all the gear and packs that Buffy would need and placed them into the overhead ventilation system. When Willow left the building, the bag looked just as full as when she'd arrived – thanks to a metal frame within. Just before ten, at the last possible moment before the building closed to the public, Buffy went on up to the Floating Garden, took one look at the extreme height and the barriers in her path, then slipped into the toilet vent and laid low for easily the most tedious five hours of her life. Why hadn't she thought to take her Gameboy? At three, she'd unlocked the rooftop door, walked right out and the rest… was the rest. And a thrilling rest it was. Life, she thought, had certainly come back to her. To all of them. Action, adventure, and no money worries. She couldn't have dreamed of a better existence.

She stood on the balcony overlooking Osaka City and smiled. It was time to get dressed and enjoy the new life.


	3. The Debriefing Period

**- _On The Council's Secret Service_ -**

_The Debriefing Period _/ 00**3**

The Flying Tomato Café was quiet by the time Will and Buffy arrived for brunch. It was almost eleven a.m. and they'd just caught the last of the breakfast buffet. The café, just like their experience of Japan so far, was a playful and eccentric environment. A bright and open room on the second floor of the hotel with a chipper ambience. White walls and lots of crazy tomato paintings made it a good place to lose the morning blues. They were enjoying their continental blend of cereal, grapefruit and toast – with lots of coffee – when a familiar and bedraggled face entered.

"Hey, Xander." Willow gave him a non-stealthy wave.

He came over to their little table with thunder hanging over his head. "Okay, something has to be done about the room-share situation. Giles… leaves old man hairs everywhere. And not just in the plug holes either. And I'm not talking about fuzzy hairs, I'm talking wire wool."

The girls smiled. "These things," Will explained, "are just trivial nuances that two people who live together must rise above in order to reach harmonious roomy utopia. Give it time."

"He uses the hairdryer!" he deplored. "Men don't use hairdryers. They understand that nature is the only key to successful grooming."

Buffy looked to the door. "Where is he anyway?"

"He took a call. It was probably the Cocky Oreo guy."

"That's Kokuryo, Xander," Will amended. "Show some respect."

"Sorry. It's the grumpy hunger." He looked around. "Breakfast buffet! Yay. I need a bacon and sausage pork pick-me-up. Be back in a jiffy."

He came back moments later with a plate stacked high with scrambled eggs, tomato, and various pig-based meats and a separate dish of toast. He sat and licked his lips in anticipation. "Giles' been bigging-up this Full English deal and ya know what they say – when in Rome."

Buffy crumpled her forehead in his direction. "I'm pretty sure the Full English isn't a native Japanese dish. If I had to hazard a guess, I'd go with English."

"Details, mon petit jambon, mere insignificant details. So how's the home team?"

Buffy filled her cup with a third dose of liquid caffeine. "I called Dawn."

"What's up with the Dawnster?" he asked between shovels of food.

"In the world according to Dawn she skipped school yesterday with Jessica to steal lingerie from various high street stores and spent the evening drinking and smoking at the Bronze."

"Ooh," Xander larked, "good wholesome fun all round."

"I'm just glad she was joking," Buffy mused. "I hope she was joking. She better be joking for her own sake." She took a sip of black tar and looked to Willow. "What about Tara?"

The young witch went all soppy and smiley. "She misses me. It's so sweet. You know, the best thing about these missions is gonna be the welcome returns after."

"Right there with ya," Xander said with a wave of the fork. "All I got out of Anya was a magic shop receipt breakdown and a long list of all the things she's gonna do to me when I get back. There was mention of handcuffs." He waggled his brows.

Will scowled. "Xander, please, we're eating."

Buffy was thankful she'd finished.

Giles came into the Flying Tomato and rushed to catch the buffet as it was closing and brought his cereal and toast and coffee over to the group. "Good morning all."

They gave him a Scooby welcome.

"I trust everyone slept well," he said, digging in.

A moment of silence passed.

"So…" Buffy intoned, "we did it, huh? Score one for the Slay-team."

"I think it went rather well," Giles agreed. "Where did our other man go after the… party last night?"

"Spike? He took his payment and went," Buffy replied. "Making his way back home maybe. Who cares."

"C'mon, Buffy," said Willow. "Why you still giving Spike a hard time? He's done a lot for us this last year."

She gave a childish shrug. "Yeah, I know. But he's still got that chip in his head and I can't imagine him being quite so civil without it. He's still soulless at the end of the day. Or night."

"Well, I for one agree with Buffy," Xander noted. "And I vote we speak of the pale one no more. So what's the plan for the next forty-eight hours?"

Giles drew himself up and looked rather perky. "I spoke with Kokuryo-san and we'll be collected at twelve for debriefing. And then, I suppose, free time to relax. Our flight home is tomorrow night so, until then, we can enjoy Japanese culture to our contentment."

At 12, Head of J collected them from the Imperial and drove them to an Aeon shopping complex in a quiet part of the city. He pulled his blue Estima Hybrid into a wide open car park and put the car to sleep. Hanada Kokuryo led them up an exterior escalator and into a small quiet café with a light friendly atmosphere. He ordered them a round of iced coffees with cream and syrup and relaxed back into his chair with a broad smile that pushed his eyes up into thin crescent moons. "How was your night?" From his smile he knew things had worked out as hoped.

"Dull," said Buffy. "Nothing much on TV but a lame Mission: Impossible rip-off."

"The party went off without a hitch," Giles restated for Head of J's benefit.

Hanada nodded, still with the wide smile across his face. He took a local newspaper from his briefcase and showed them the second page. There was a stock photo of the city with their target and the Sky Building in the foreground. The picture was surrounded by an alien mix of Chinese characters and the two Japanese phonetic alphabets. "You made the news," Hanada revealed. "We fed the newspapers a 'leaked' story that the building experienced an electrical surge and so forth. Needless to say it was a clean operation – not too many questions being raised and no come-backs. The Director General's Office is more concerned with the unusual nature of the building at this time. You should be very proud of yourselves. I've seen experienced members of our company come here and create a mess before now. Well, I am pleased the winds were in your favour last night because now you have two days to enjoy my country. Unfortunately you've given me much paperwork. I shall leave you in the care of my son Kiyoshi. He is a good boy. Keeps Universal Personnel ticking over nicely for the public eye and also works for me in my private offices. Head of X doesn't seem to mind me running my stationary factory on the side. After all, when funding is low it helps pay for parties like the one you had last night. Kiyoshi will collect you at three p.m. from your hotel. He grew up here in Osaka and knows the city well. He will keep you entertained. I have to go now and take care of business. I'm afraid this coffee we have must replace sake – a toast to our first business transaction together. May we have many ahead of us. Kampai."

They all raised their glasses happily and repeated: "Kampai."

Buffy surfaced from the water and pushed the hair from her face. She was in the Olympic-sized pool of the Imperial Hotel with Willow. They had a little time to relax before Head of J's son was due. In the heat of the Japanese summer, the pool had looked especially inviting. The room that housed it was a large oval space aglow with daylight shining in through the frosted-glass walls, and wooden sun loungers and small trees in containers circled the pool. The few people that had been swimming were now gone and they had the pool to themselves.

Willow reached the side panting for breath. "No…more…racing," she managed. "I'm washed out."

"Ready to admit now that you can't beat a Slayer?"

"This is me," she said, shaking her fist, "waving the white flag."

They hung on the side of the pool a while to get their strength.

"Where'd Xander go?" Willow asked at length.

"He said something about 'Lucy Liu' and 'massage'."

"Oh. I wouldn't wanna be him when Anya hears about it."

"Well, I certainly won't be giving her that bit of news." Buffy thought for a moment. "I bet Giles went to the gym. All these lean middle-aged Asian guys – I definitely saw him checking out his waistline."

Will gave a giggle and then came a loud splash from the other side of the pool. They turned to see the distant ripples and watched as a dark shape moved rapidly towards them under the surface. The swimmer came up on Buffy's right and broke through the water, finishing sat on the pool edge. The girls watched him quizzically. He was young – maybe twenty or so – and presented himself only in a pair of black swimming shorts and a black shower cap.

"Buffy Summers?" he asked, looking deep into her green eyes.

She hardly registered his words as she looked him over. He was beautiful, if Buffy could say such a thing of a guy. But it was true. A slightly feminine face – thin delicate and attractive. Lean body, slightly tanned and smooth. The eyes were piercing black fissures that drew her in with the pull of their gravity. He wasn't buff, she noted, but he _was_ lush.

"I'm Kiyoshi Kokuryo," he said.

Buffy's mouth dropped.

"You're a hard person to find. Even in a hotel." His English was excellent. There was even a hint of a North American accent.

"I hope I was worth the effort." She caught herself and flushed with embarrassment.

He continued, ignoring her pink cheeks; "You really should wear a hat when you come to a pool in Japan. It's a rule of our society." He tapped the cap on his head.

He had a presence that put Buffy right at ease. "Noted and filed for future reference. Shower caps in pools." She gave an obedient nod.

Kiyoshi smiled at her humorous manner then turned his dark eyes to Willow. There was a pause.

"Oh," Buffy said, pinching herself mentally, "This is Willow."

She gave him a wave. "Hi."

"My father said you don't get to travel much," he went on, turning back to Buffy. "Come with me. I want to show you a different slice of life." With that he disappeared under the water. Buffy watched him until he surfaced again at the far side. He lifted himself out and moved to the changing rooms. He stopped and looked back to her, beckoning with a hand.

She didn't seem to move.

Willow banged her with an elbow. "Stop staring."

"Was I?" She checked for drool.

A few minutes later, the girls were dried and in their clothes. Buffy called Giles on her company cellphone and got no reply. Willow had more success with Xander's and the girls went with Kiyoshi to the foyer where they waited for Xander to locate Giles and drag him out of the hotel. Twenty minutes later the guys were freshened up and walking into the lobby.

"Guess where I found Mr. Straight-laced Britty-pants here," Xander offered loudly. "Or, should I say, guess who I found bending and stretching with a bunch of Japanese chicks – ogling their lycra-tight butts."

"I was not ogling," insisted Giles. "It was Yoga. It's practically a sport."

Willow poked him sorely. "You're a Yoga ogler."

Giles straightened his spectacles out while the moment of mockery passed.

Buffy introduced them to Kiyoshi.

Giles gave a bow. "I have to say, I've been rather looking forward to exploring the orient. Where will you take us?"

Kiyoshi looked to the ceiling and considered. "I was thinking…Yodobashi, karaoke, yakiniku and maybe purikura if there's time."

Xander, none the wiser, whispered: "I have no idea what he just said."

Kiyoshi slapped him on the arm warmly. "You will. Come. You should buy souvenirs for your families."

They walked through the close wet-heat of Umeda City through teaming crowds of pedestrians and cyclists. Most of the people they saw wore formal clothing and Buffy wondered how they managed in such shocking weather. As they passed a train station and moved over a wide pedestrian crossing they saw the arresting shape of the Sky Building in the distance. The gang shared a secret smile over it. The Scoobies were thankful when Kiyoshi lead them into a shopping complex he called Yodobashi Camera. The building was conditioned to a cool and crisp twenty. The building – an enormous single tall ovular block – had nine floors filled with everything from clothes to the largest selection of electronic goods they'd ever seen. Buffy found a cute origame kit for Dawn and she and Will got a bunch of summer kimonos, called yukata, to take back. Xander seemed to spend a lot of time in the manga comic section. According to Kiyoshi, it was the pervert section. Eventually he copied the girls and bought a yukata for Anya and found a great deal on a camera. Giles got himself a few knick-knacks and spent half an hour in a leather massage chair. Kiyoshi rounded them up after an hour and took them back out into the humid afternoon briefly. They walked a couple of blocks and into a side street. There he introduced them to Japanese karaoke. He booked them in for two hours, collected a computer device and microphones from the receptionist and led them to a small second floor room. Throughout the floor they could hear the wailing of various people from the rooms around them. It was like a tiny karaoke hotel. Their room was furnished with a u-shaped sofa, a table, and a large TV with overhead twin speakers. Inside the room, the sounds of the other booths disappeared. Drinks came complimentary and, as the Scoobs were more than a little reluctant, Kiyoshi kicked them off with a J-pop song. It wasn't long before they found their spirits and joined in. As it turned out it was much more fun than they could have imagined. Xander broke them up with his rendition of 'Man, I feel like a woman.' Willow chased it with a double-whammy of Madonna and a ludicrous duet of 'Don't wanna miss a thing' with Xander. Buffy had taken the plunge with a couple of safe love songs. She was having the best time just listening to her friends. This was a whole new side she was seeing to her team. Then there was Giles who was just plain showing off with a jivin' version of 'All shook up' and a kick-ass blast of 'Born to be wild'. The two hours flew hilariously and they were sorry when it came time to leave.

"It's a shame your Dad had paperwork," Buffy said to Kiyoshi, a little hoarse from the singing.

"Paperwork? He has people who do that for him," he replied. "He probably just didn't know what to do with you on a social level. He doesn't like being in awkward situations. I guess he thought I would relate to you better. My father's more used to showing salary-man types around"

"Salary-man types?" Will puzzled.

"Business men. Older guys and formal conversation. Boring really. He probably thought someone your own age would be better. I'm pretty sure because he's never had me do this before. But I'm being paid, and it's fun, so I won't complain!" He told them they had to do something called 'purikura' before they could leave Japan. It was a picture-club, he told them. Something the school kids – especially girls – did daily and even adults were known to go along regularly. He walked them to another large building. This one was decorated red with a large Ferris wheel attached to the roof. Hep-five, he told them. Another shopping mall, this time dedicated mostly to clothing it seemed. In the foyer space they were amazed to see a giant life-sized pink model of a humpback whale with her baby. The snout hung just a few metres above them and the tail ended almost at the top floor. They examined it the whole way up the escalators to the top. Then Kiyoshi led them through a glass tunnel where they saw the city view and, on the other side, the profile of the Big Wheel. He took them up further to a game centre where they met their first purikura machine. It was a photo booth, but larger than any they had seen, and was decorated in colourful plastic posters that hid the insides. There they took a bunch of crazy pictures as a group and used a special screen to add effects and doodles and writing to them. _Welcome to Japan! Scooby Gang in Japan 2002!_

Memories that will last forever, Kiyoshi told them.

Buffy was looking around the games machines alone when Kiyoshi walked over to her. "You know, Buffy, you have every guy here dreaming over you," he said in a secretive tone.

"No way," she replied.

He crossed his heart. "Seriously. Guys have looked at you everywhere we went. You are beautiful, you have blonde hair and green eyes, and you're a westerner. You're like the Japanese image of a perfect girl. You will have many admirers here."

She smiled and blushed for the second time that day, wondering to herself if maybe he was one of those admirers. The others gathered and everyone agreed it was time to find food. Kiyoshi was pleased to see they were all full of energy. He told them he would take them for yakiniku. Afterward, if they were still as fresh, he might even take them along to a nightclub.

Xander and Willow received a severe glare from a young store clerk on their way back down the building as they fled down the escalator, having approached a mannequin with posable hands and merrily rearranged the middle finger.


	4. The Assassin and the Halfbreed

**- **_**On The Council's Secret Service**_** -**

----------

_The Assassin and the Half-breed _/ 00**4**

The restaurant was small and thick with the smoke of cooking food. The Slay-team left their shoes in the walkway and sat on cushions around their table on a raised platform. Kiyoshi ordered a variety of vegetables and meat, explaining that, unlike the west, Japanese preferred to order everything and share it between themselves. Soon he was cooking the raw food on the barbecue grill in the centre of their table. He told them that 'yakiniku' meant something like 'burned meat'. In other words, a J-style BBQ.

Kiyoshi pointed to a group of men in boring suits sat at the bar by the door. They looked like a group of clones. "Salary-men," he explained. "They have a priority to drink and socialise with their colleagues after their work before they go home to their families. Japanese society is all about work. And these guys will probably be with the same company all their lives. Commitment is also important."

"I can relate to that," said Buffy. "I'm stuck with this gig for the rest of ever. I retired twice but my friends won't let me rest," she joked.

Giles was adding more delicious strips of beef to the grill when he noticed a couple more of the salary-types having a brief altercation with a waitress. She had been leading them to a smaller table down the end of the walkway and it seemed the men were insisting on being seated at the larger table just across from the Scoobs. The waitress looked intimidated by the rough manner of the men and she quickly conceded and sat them at their pleasure.

"Chuck another snag on tha barby, Ripper," Xander hollered in the worst Australian accent Giles had ever heard.

"Fairdincum, mate," Xander went on, "This barby's bonza, Ripper."

"Do be quiet," Giles grumbled. "Before it's _your_ tongue on the barby and not the cow's."

Xander hesitated with a sliver of meat an inch from his mouth. "What?"

Willow hid her mouth from Xander and said quietly: "I told him it was really thin steak."

Xander dropped the cow tongue from his chopsticks and swallowed a glass of water. "Fine," he said, picking up a battered onion ring. "I'll stick with vegetables."

"Actually," Kiyoshi jumped in, "that's ika."

"Ika? Never heard of it."

"It's squid."

"Ugh." Xander had more water and waited until the others started up their conversations again before he leaned over to Willow. "When can we go get some _real_ food?"

Will scrunched her eyes at him. "Be nice."

"I can be nice on a full stomach of real food."

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try a unique cultural culinary experiment. Dive in!"

-

The insistent men at the table opposite theirs watched the Scoobs carefully whilst glancing over their menus.

-

Somehow the subject had turned to the American bombing of Japan and Xander leapt straight in, not wanting to ruin the good mood of the day: "May I be the first to apologise for that."

"Don't ever do that," Kiyoshi said in a whisper. "It's the best thing that could have happened. Before Hiroshima we thought we could rule the world. It gave us humility and made Japan what it is today. I like how we turned out." He realised he'd surprised them more than he expected. "Don't think I'm not sorry for the loss of life but we were on a suicide course as it was. It woke us up." And then he added quickly: "Don't tell my father I said so."

Xander leapt in again: "Apology retracted."

They finished the meal and Kiyoshi asked them how they'd like, for their last day in his country, to visit Universal Studios Japan and have some movie-orientated amusement and rollercoaster fun. Giles was beginning to feel a little out of place with their youthful antics but it might just be interesting so he agreed with the others and said he would love to go, then he made a comment about the free-flowing nature of the complimentary water and he moved off to the bathroom. Willow did the same.

Xander got up. "Speaking of which, I think I'll go water the Bonsai trees." He headed away also.

Buffy turned to regard her young Japanese guide now that they were alone.

-

Behind Buffy, one of the insistent men lifted a small wooden box, usually used to carry a flute, and placed it on his table. The girl was almost alone. He couldn't foresee a better opening arising so he opened the box. Inside there was a thin length of bamboo and a sharp metal dart with a feathered tail. He was about to remove the items when a damned waitress turned up to take their order.

-

"What made you get involved with the Council?" Buffy asked as she looked into his deep inviting eyes.

"I'm not," replied Kiyoshi with a smile. "I just do my father's paperwork sometimes. Keep Universal Personnel looking like it's a real company. Most of my time I'm at the offices of his stationary company. I'm a salary-man too." He gave her an infectious grin.

"Sounds like a busy life." She looked away from him a moment and toyed with her chopsticks. "You…mustn't get much time to be with your girlfriend."

"Oh." He too turned briefly before looking into her emerald eyes. "I don't have a girlfriend right now."

Giles returned to his seat opposite Buffy. He noticed the waitress leave the table across from them. It was the insistent men's table and he noticed that a different waitress was now dealing with them. They must have scared the other girl off, he thought.

-

The waitress was gone and the insistent man reopened his toolbox. One of the girl's companions had returned but he had to act quickly before the three became a crowd of five again. As surreptitiously as possible, he took out the bamboo and, careful not to rub the tip, inserted the dart into it.

-

Giles saw the glint of metal out the corner of his eye. He hid his face behind Buffy with just enough to give him a view of the insistent man. He saw the length of bamboo in his hand and grew suspicious. Something hadn't been right with these guys from the moment they'd stepped in. The man lifted one end of the bamboo stick to his mouth.

Buffy felt Giles' fingers on her arm. She looked up at him with a frown.

"Move aside when I tell you," he said bluntly and severely.

Buffy tensed.

Giles observed the man wrap his lips around the bamboo and take in a mouthful of air to power the shot.

"Now."

Buffy ducked to the side and Giles stopped the dart with a menu before it could hit his chest.

Panic shook the diners as the assassins threw their table over and ran through the back of the restaurant.

Buffy gave a quick glance at the dart that stuck from the menu. The tip was wet with a fluid she knew wasn't there to improve her health. She threw on her shoes and ran after the men.

The vampires split outside the restaurant and went off in opposite directions. Buffy came out into the food and shopping complex and saw one of them crossing the plaza. She jumped a rail and flower border and made after him.

In a dark corner of the shopping plaza, between a Mister Donut and an ice-cream parlour, a shadowy figure watched as one of the vampires he was tailing headed past him and over a wooden bridge. The shadows parted as the Daywalker stepped into the glow of the street lamps. Blade watched Kojima run beyond the bridge and between two clothes stores. Feeling the adrenaline of the hunt, he gave chase over the bridge and after the vampire like a hungry cheetah.

Buffy crossed a bridge that flew over a lower shopping plaza and followed the target – now there were two of them – and she tried to keep up. They were moving fast out of her sight and she reached for the pink cellphone in her pocket.

-

Giles and Xander were helping the waitress lift the upturned table back into place when Giles' phone rang. He went back to his chair and snatched the mobile from inside his jacket. "Hello? … Buffy?…Where are you?"

-

She took a sharp turn left out of the complex and into an alley lined with crawling ivy. She saw the trailing vampire vanish to the right into another street. She ran at full speed through the alley with the phone pressed at her ear. "Across the bridge at the plaza, left, down a ramp, second right, left and right again."

-

Blade finally caught up with Kojima on an abstract bridge designed more like a tunnel. From the outside it appeared as a metal frame occasionally decorated with corrugated steel. Inside it was clad with wooden boards though the centre path was boarded with strips of metal and a series of metal pillars and girders decorated with bolts ran either side of the path. Overhead, wooden rafters ran the length of the bridge.

Blade entered the structure and made a sprint for the vampire. As Kojima reached the centre of the bridge he spun and fired a bullet at the Daywalker. Blade let it hit his vest as he ran into the vampire and broke his gun arm. He didn't want to kill this suck-head yet. Not until he found out who the next link was in his chain of command. He was about to demand the info when Kojima tried to stab him with a knife. Blade caught the wrist and twisted the arm around and the knife fell. He barred a leg behind both of the vampire's and slammed a palm into his face. Kojima flew over, tripping on Blade's leg and smacking hard on his back into the metal of the bridge. The Daywalker reached down for him but Kojima kicked and kicked to keep from his grasp. Blade shoved the wild limbs aside and dragged the freak up by his brown tie. Kojima hissed and tried to bite at him. Blade slammed nut on the guy and he relaxed in his grip.

Blade bore his gleaming white teeth at the vamp. "Now you're gonna tell me who you work for."

"Eigo de ienai! Wakarimasen!" he spat back insistently.

"Bulls––t. You understand me just fine – now talk before I start cutting off limbs."

"I will tell you nothing, Daywalker! You may be accustomed to mongrels who squeal like farmyard pigs but I am pureblood gokudō!" Kojima wrestled free and made a desperate dash across the bridge. Blade drew his gun from the holster under his coat and fired a single burst of hollow-points into his back. Kojima gasped as he exploded in flame and ash. Within seconds his remains had drifted away on the evening breeze. Blade put a finger to his ear and was about to contact Whistler when he sensed someone approaching him at hunting speed.

Buffy turned the corner and met with one of the vampires as he stood curiously on a second bridge alone. She put the phone away and approached the unusual overpass. In the centre of the bridge was a figure dressed in black and wrapped in a long black coat. Another dark broody vampire, she thought. On further inspection she noticed other things. The handle of a sword poked out from his back and his hair, from the temples, over his ears and to the nape of his neck was replaced by an impressive tribal tattoo. He watched her approach, frozen in readiness for any move she might make, like a hunting cat. He didn't look Japanese but African-American. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes and his face held no emotion but his body was primed to explode all over her. He was a vampire if ever she'd seen one. He was the most serious-looking vampire warrior she'd ever seen. Buffy circled the poised warrior cautiously. She knew he had something to do with the assassins at the restaurant and she was determined to find out who they were and how they knew who she was. But, if there was no other choice, she would dust this creature like any other.

"This is how it's going to be," she informed him. "You're going to tell me who you are and why you want me dead." He didn't respond. "Or I'm gonna have to get physical," she added. He still didn't make a move. He looked like one of those street statues. Maybe if she put a quarter in his hat…?

She decided he needed some incentive to spill his beans and she moved in to perform the ironic move of twisting his arm as it always worked on Spike. As she attacked, he fended her hands off with a quick succession of moves before trying to knock off her head. She ducked and swept his legs. Blade jumped the attack and kicked at her but she rolled out of it and came back with a foot into his face. He dodged and swung another sweeping leg strike at her yet, again, she pulled away and avoided it.

They stopped a moment and held off their attacks in an odd stalemate. Neither one of their attacks had connected. They were in this face-off position when more people appeared. Buffy was pleased to see her team arrive. Giles came around her and held a cross out toward the dark warrior. Willow held position on the other side of her with Xander who had a vile of holy water in his grip. Their emergency kit was out.

The warrior vampire was cornered.

* * *

(This story takes place just after Blade 2)

BLADE belongs to MARVEL and NEW LINE etc. etc.


	5. The Difference Between A Vamp and A Vamp

**- **_**On The Council's Secret Service**_** -**

----------

_The Difference Between A Vampire and A Vampire _/ 00**5**

Blade stood cornered by the Slay-team.

Xander looked him over. "Nice tattoo. Did ya paint it on yourself?"

Blade regarded him indignantly.

"Where's Kiyoshi?" Buffy asked.

Giles kept his cross held firmly out. "He went to let his father know what happened."

Buffy slipped the stake from the back of her pants and held it ready. "Careful, guys. This one's slippery."

Blade heard Whistler over his ear radio. He'd located Kojima's partner. There was a second chance at getting his answers. He cast his eyes at the idiot circus clowns around him and then spoke at them in a deep animal tone: "Holy water? Crosses? Man, you people in the wrong part a' town." And then he was gone – through the metal girders and over the side of the bridge. Buffy ran to the rail.

"Who _was_ that?" Willow called.

"He wasn't in the restaurant, Buffy," Giles pointed out.

Xander went to the rail. "What's going on?"

"I don't know," Buffy admitted. "I'm going after him. Keep in touch." Then she too was gone.

----------

Buffy had dropped from the bridge to an artificial river and followed the warrior through a series of tight alleys then lost him as he scaled a parking facility and disappeared onto the roof. She was just reaching the rooftop, pocketing her cellphone, and pulling herself onto solid ground when she was surprised to see another man there. She crept behind a compact car and looked across at the stranger who stood with his back to her looking down at the street on the far side of the roof. His hair was long and grey and in severe need of a condition and blow-dry. He wore a dirty brown jacket and looked much like a vagabond. She noticed that a metal and leather frame braced his right leg and the way he held himself confirmed that he was an old man. Yet, she felt there was something suspect in the way he spied on whatever was in the street below. She came out from behind the car and stepped quietly toward the man. She would sneak up behind him and give him a small scare to soften him up–

Buffy halted when she felt cold metal on her temple.

Blade held the gun at the girl's head as Whistler turned.

The old man rolled around casually to face Buffy. "Well, well. Lose your way, li'l Miss?" With a few confident limping strides, he moved to her and manhandled her arms and head, checking under the fabric of her clothes for something.

"What are you doing?" Buffy asked with a measure of control. The gun still watched her with its hollow eye.

The beardy old man turned to the warrior. "She doesn't have the mark. She's not a Familiar."

Buffy began to feel confusion outweigh her sense of self-preservation. "What mark?" she demanded. "Familiar with who?"

Whistler examined her face. She appeared truly clueless and serious. He looked from her to Blade and seemed to look at him through her eyes until realisation flashed across his face. "She thought you were a vampire."

"He _is_ a vampire."

"Come here." The old man took her arm and led her over to the edge of the roof where she'd first seen him. He showed her the noodle bar below. "The real vampire's down there."

In a narrow back street lined with high lanterns, among moody restaurants and rough-looking bars, was a street noodle stand on the corner of the opening to a smaller side street. It was a high counter ringed with stools and with a red banner forming a screen above the counter to give a measure of privacy to the patrons. The vampire that had tried to murder her was sat there now alone. His face showed briefly through a join in the screen. He seemed to be drinking from a tumbler of clear liquid. She figured it was Japanese sake.

A mechanical rumble drew their attention to the roof elevator. Giles and Xander came tearing out of the box to Buffy's aid. There wasn't time to call them off. Blade raised his black and silver gun as Xander stormed him. Whistler extracted a sawn Remington from under his jacket and pumped the loading handle. It looked like Giles was gonna get it. Willow drifted out of the elevator with a black shadow over her eyes. She reached out with the wiccan force of kinetic manipulation and ripped the weapon from Blade's hand. It crossed the roof and landed in Xander's palm. Buffy kicked up and the shotgun flew skyward out of Whistler's grip. Buffy shot a fist out and held it back an inch from his nose. Whistler reeled and Buffy caught the spinning scattergun as it fell.

She rested the barrel of the long weapon against her shoulder as her team joined her. Xander kept Blade in check with the pistol Will had acquired for him.

Whistler glanced over at Blade who didn't look so happy, then scrutinised the Slay-team. "Who in the hell are you people?"

"We're substitute English teachers," Giles replied smartly.

"They hunt the demons," said Blade, recalling their crosses and holy water.

"We hunt _any_ evil things," Buffy clarified. "And, for that matter, who are you?"

"This is Blade. He hunts evil things too. I'm Abraham Whistler. I help Blade hunt evil things."

Xander, with his new knowledge of weaponry, eyed the adapted German pistol in his hand. "A modified Heckler & Koch. What are you firing out of this thing?"

Blade slowly reached to reclaim his gun and raised it proudly. "Silver hollow-points loaded with garlic essence and silver nitrate. I call 'em _vampire's bane_."

"I call 'em kick-ass," Xander said, glaring at the weapon like it was made of gold. He also noticed Blade's tattoo again and realised it probably wasn't fake. Gotta give the gun-toting bad-ass vampire hunter respect, he said to himself.

Whistler was still regarding Buffy with curious eyes. She handed the shotgun over. "I'm Buffy," she said at last. "A vampire slayer." She introduced the rest of the team and explained: "We work for a Council that fights evil and we're here on the Council's secret service." She sat on the edge of the building to spy on her would-be assassin who was still drinking heavily below.

Blade joined the old man and looked down to the street. "We're gonna have trouble gettin' him to talk. These guys are sticking to their blood oaths."

Whistler turned his lip up with distaste. "Purebloods."

"Purebloods?" Buffy repeated. "What's that?"

"They were born vampires, not turned," Blade replied.

"What? That's not possible."

Whistler gave her a knowing glance. "It is for Hominus nocturna."

Xander cut in with his fingers up pointedly. "I'm having a little trouble connecting the invisible dots here. What are we talking about? Vampires can breed?"

"Explain this to me," Buffy insisted.

"Well now," Whistler considered, regarding the vampire below, "that's a long story and we got our hands a little full right now."

"They tried to kill me. I want to know."

Blade answered: "There's more than one breed of vampire out there."

Whistler made a resigned sigh. "You've got yer hominus nocturna – the vampires we hunt – and the lower-class hominus daemonium. One group is the result of a viral parasite and the other of a parasite stooped in demonic mysticism. I'm guessing you know more about that side of the dysfunctional family. Basically you got a diseased, intelligent community that's got their fangs in every part of our society's pie and pose the real threat to this planet. And you got their savage animal cousins who're a passing nuisance at best."

Giles got his back up at that. "I can assure you that vampires …hominus daemonium …are far more than a nuisance."

"Then why do the suck-monkeys we bring down view your demons as bastard offshoots?" asked Whistler. "Nothin' more than a pack of dogs. Your vamps run around aimlessly pickin' off the dregs of society. Hominus nocturna, on the other hand, practically run the major cities of the world. Take that son of a bitch down there." Whistler pointed to the noodle bar. "He's Shinkudō. Vampire Mafia. That's organised crime, kids. These purebloods are thinking people not wild animals in human form." He turned away. "End of lesson. Class dismissed."

Buffy wasn't done at that. "So why did this vamp of yours try to acupuncture me to death? Was it something to do with our mission at Shadō?"

"Shadō?" Whistler reviewed. "Doesn't mean a thing to me. That guy's Shinkudō so only he can give you that answer."

Willow approached the old man. "What is it you're aiming to do about this Shinkudō?"

"We're tryin' to follow the chain of command from the bottom up until we land the Overlord that's running the show. The Shinkudō are big and they do a lot a' damage. Their fingers are in more pies than you can imagine. Bringing that empire down'll make a hell of a difference."

"How are you gonna find out how to get to the top of Shinkudō?" Will pushed.

"Blade usually gets through by kickin' ass n' making 'em talk."

"But these Shinkudō don't talk easy," explained Blade. "Especially the purebloods."

"Ever thought of working undercover?" Buffy challenged and received vacant looks from the two strangers. "It's called the 'Secret Service'."

Whistler looked to his partner. "Miss, if ya haven't noticed, we tend to stand out in a crowd."

"Look," Buffy began with a more diplomatic tone, "you want to get to the heart of this vampire Mafia and I want to know what their beef is with me. If John Rambo here can find the holster for his gun and let my team do their jobs we might just get a result for both of us."

Blade cocked an eyebrow at Whistler as if looking to his father for support.

"You said yourself you can't beat it out of them," she argued. "From what I've heard you like to use your fists and not your mouth. We have other methods that could work."

Whistler was a little impressed by the girl's strength of character. He particularly liked the way she compared Blade to Rambo. "You tell us exactly how you plan to pull off your little mission: impossible and you might just have a deal."

Buffy called a time-out to form a Slay-team huddle. As she was now part of a unit she asked how they felt about launching a hands-on investigation. Everyone agreed that if they could formulate a plan they were in.

"We only have tonight," noted Giles. "Tomorrow night we leave Japan."

"We gotta make our move now." Xander checked the screen on his cell. "It's almost nine thirty. We've got some time."

Willow raised the all-important puzzler: "How do we infiltrate the Japanese vampire Mafia in one night?"

"A valid point," said Giles. "And our only lead saw us all at the restaurant tonight."

Xander huffed. "We'd be spotted quicker than a Klingon in a police line-up. It'll be the most poorly executed mission since Custer headed out to Little Bighorn."

Buffy thought. "There may be a way."

She made a call.

----------

Half an hour later, Spike arrived. He was still in the cream suit with his mousy hair but the beard was gone.

Buffy met him. "Spike, I wasn't sure if you'd skipped town already."

"Thought I'd look up old friends while I'm in town. I know a cute little Grub Demon in Namba that gives a mean – err … back rub."

Her nose creased and she went on to explain the situation and her hasty plan.

"If this guy tried to kill me it might have something to do with what we did here. That suggests a link between Shadō and this Shinkudō," she finished.

"Right. A little proddin' n' pokin'. Get some answers. If I sound less than enthusiastic about this plan it's probably cos it's got the shakiest foundations since the tower of Pisa."

"I know," Buffy agreed. "They tried to assassinate me so we have to try something. I'd go myself if I could. At least there's a chance they won't recognise you."

Spike nodded in submission to the facts.

Whistler saw they were ready to instigate their little scheme and figured they should be made aware of all the facts. He went to them. "Okay; a few things you need to know; these vampires like to surround themselves with human slaves – willing slaves, mind – called Familiars. Familiars are everywhere. Look out for 'em. They're usually recognised by their glyph tattoos that identify which suck-head owns 'em. For all we know, the President of the United States could be a Familiar."

"He's certainly not smart enough to be one of your vamps," Xander joked.

Whistler continued: "I dunno what yer used to but decapitation, stab to the heart and sunlight burn these blood-sponges up. And remember; these suck-heads don't have a problem with crosses or holy water. And they spread their disease by introducing their saliva to the human bloodstream."

Blade returned from the shadows. "So don't get bitten."

Whistler backed his statement up with a nod and turned to Buffy. "We'll give you tonight to do it your way."


	6. The Aftermission Mission

**- _On The Council's Secret Service_ -**

_The After-mission Mission _/ 00**6**

Spike ducked under the red banner and took a place at the dirty noodle bar on one of the wooden stools. A couple of frumpy middle-aged women were sat around at the far end of the counter deep in conversation interspersed with bouts of giddy laughter. The only other patron was the vampire in the dull brown-grey suit sat on the corner at a right-angle to him. Spike asked the ageing worker for alcohol and received a glass of sake poured over a single mountain of ice.

"Guess you had a near miss too, cousin," he said after what he thought was a suitable period of silence. The vampire looked to him guardedly. "Not quite blood but certainly helps dull the headache of a bad day, doesn't it?" he added, hoping to appeal to the man's sense of common ground. When the vampire went back to his drink with nothing more than a raising of his brow, Spike pushed forward: "The name's Byrne. I was a guest at a meeting last night. Almost got my arse cremated." The vampire – Yamato, the old guy had said – showed a slight but definite reaction. Spike continued: " See; I was takin' information to a bunch of 'roadway to punishment' guys," he said, using the English name for the Shadō group.

That seemed to get his viral cousin's attention. "And who are you to interest them?"

"I'm from London – in England. I know where that Watchers' Council is," he said nonchalantly.

Yamato was clearly intrigued. "Sō? But I am not part of that outfit."

"That makes neither of us, mate. But I got intel and no one to tell it to. And those guys that got fried seemed to think it was pretty important last night." Spike cleaned out his glass and got up to leave. "Well, I better make tracks. No point hangin' about. Certainly don't wanna be stuck here another day if I can help it." He began to walk away. After a few steps, he cursed himself. His ruse of apathy seemed to have failed. Buffy wouldn't be too pleased. Unless he could think of some reason to go back and push further?

"Hey, Byrne."

Spike turned around. Yamato had left the bar. "You were being paid to bring this information?"

"Err… that's right. Sure."

"What was your fee?"

His eyes lit up and he searched for a figure that sounded fair but would show the value of his knowledge. "One million in yen."

"All right, cousin." Yamato put a friendly arm on his shoulder. "We may be able to help each other."

The Vampire walked Spike to a blacked-out Mitsubishi Galant and began to drive them across the city. From what Spike could gather, this Yamato didn't much want to return to his little cell of the Shinkudō empty handed. Little did Yamato know, as Spike understood exactly why he was afraid to return. He'd failed in his mission. If they really were the vampire Mafia then Spike might just have offered him a chance to make some kind of amends for his failure. Now Spike knew there was a link between them and Shadō. He just didn't know how it worked yet.

A quarter of an hour later, they pulled up in the car park of the Osaka Center for Pharmaceutical Research. It was a low building with five storeys in a cold steely design. Interesting cover, Spike thought. He was led into the sterile labs through a number of security checks. They moved through office sections of the ground floor to a large security door where Yamato ran a small tattoo on his forearm through a scanner. The thick metal door opened inward to a large waiting-room area. The security barricade closed firmly behind them. Within a moment, a regular steel door opened and a middle-aged Japanese man in a white lab coat entered – another vampire. "Yamato?"

He said something in reply. The name Kojima came up – his partner's name. From what Spike could make out he was asking if his co-assassin had checked in. From the other guy's reply it didn't look like he had. Yamato then indicated to Spike and offered him as a penance. He was told to wait and the lab-vamp disappeared back through the door. Yamato was sweating but he looked a little relieved also.

Spike saw a chance while the pureblood was off-guard. "I thought you said you weren't part of Shadō. Why am I here?"

"I am Shinkudō," the other vampire replied. "The less you know about us the better. But, just so you understand the importance of your information, the Shinkudō built the Shadō for … for your breed."

"Why? From what I gather you infected lot don't care for my breed."

"True. But you have your uses. That Council of Watchers, for example, has upped its game – done an overhaul and got serious in the process. My breed likes to have yours in the background to keep the attention of ones like the Council and their Slayers off our backs. Especially with Blade around. With Shadō we were just giving our cousins a hand – a push in the right direction. Make them all upwardly mobile and s––t."

So, that was it. Spike wondered how he could find a quiet corner to call Buffy. Then he remembered Yamato mentioned Blade. Buffy had asked him to try and get some info for that bulky master-of-the-broody-brow. "Blade, huh? Heard he's pretty lethal. 'Least I only got Slayers to worry about."

"We may not have to worry about Blade much longer either," he said in a clandestine tone.

"Yeah?"

Yamato nodded. "There's a German scientist – a Familiar – she's developed some kind of design for a weapon that will put the Daywalker in his place."

"This 'place' is six feet under I wager."

The pureblood laughed. "Sō desu. If anything remains to bury, that is."

"Must be some weapon." Spike waited but Yamato didn't offer to give its secrets away. "Like… an anti-vampire-hunter warhead or somethin'? Maybe a Blade-seekin' missile?"

"I don't know yet. Nakamura has flown her in to reveal the design. In fact, she should be here sometime tonight. Then we will all know how the Daywalker will be crushed." He grinned at the thought.

"This German bint…" he probed. "Big lass, is it? A few whiskers under the armpits?"

Yamato looked at him strangely. "I wouldn't know. We haven't seen her yet."

The door opened again and they were invited through.

When they left the waiting area they found themselves in some kind of meeting room. Much larger than regular meeting rooms, however, as it had a number of tables and a desk at one end. There was a display board and around the cold metal and white plastic room were machines and tools the likes of which escaped Spike. He guessed it was a lecture room of some sort. A place to show off a new design for a weapon perhaps. The lab-vamp walked them in, closed the door and went out again through a second door. As he departed, someone else entered. Spike was stunned. A vampire who looked no older than Dawn stepped purposefully in with the grace of a feline. She was petite, dainty, and so utterly cute. Cute in a deadly sense as she wore a long curved katana sword at her side. Her hair was a lighter shade of brown rather than black and it hung straight and feathered just below her shoulders. Her fringe was cut straight across her eyes, barely revealing them. The eyes, Spike noticed, were far apart but perfect little almonds of white and brown. With her button-nose and thin wet lips she was just the most amazing thing Spike had ever seen. The rest of her was clothed in a loose warrior kimono and then there was that soddin' katana blade. That didn't bode well in Spike's book.

"Nazumi?" Yamato breathed with a renewed air of concern. He said something to her and she moved around him. Without lifting her gaze from the linoleum floor she replied briefly and flatly. She stopped at his back.

Yamato looked to Spike. "We have to wait a moment for Nakamura-san. No problem."

In a lightning stroke, Nazumi swept the sword from its sheath and through Yamato's neck.

Spike's eyes widened with surprise. When he expected to see the vampire dry to dust his surprise became shock as Yamato ignited and rotted away to fiery ash before his eyes. The burning matter settled on the floor and smouldered as it went out. Spike looked to the deadly girl and wondered what her next move would be. She aimed the tip of her razor sword at his head. "You. Wait." And she slipped the sword home and went gliding out of the room, closing the door.

"Bloody hell!" Spike practically tore the cellphone from his trousers and checked the signal. Two bars; not bad. He called up Buffy's number and crawled behind the desk to give him time to hide the phone should the door open. When she answered he gave her the high-speed short version of everything Yamato had told him and the location of the building. Then he told her about Yamato's death and the German Familiar. He had a good idea what she might do with that bit of info.

"Look, Buffy, I don't think my cover's gonna hold much longer with these disease freaks," he went on. "I may be losing my head anytime soon. So, if there's a plan rollin' around that unfathomable brain of yours, ya might wanna hurry it along there."

On the rooftop of the car park, Buffy held out her pink phone on speaker. "What exactly is this German gonna do there tonight?" she asked.

"She's developed a design for some weapon that can defeat the Daywalker for whatever that's worth. I suppose y' could blag it."

She covered the handset and whispered to Blade: "Daywalker? What's that mean?"

"It means she's got a bullet with her name on it," Blade rumbled.

Buffy gasped mentally, "She's _human_." Then Spike's impatient ranting took her back to the call. "Okay, Spike. Try to keep your cover up. We'll… do something."

Spike heard the whine as she cut him off. Charmin'. Then he heard the heavy footfalls of people approaching. He pocketed the mobile and came out from hiding. The door opened and the sweet little deadly vixen drifted in and stood to his rear. Her left hand, he noticed, was already wrapped around the hilt of the sword at her right hip. He knew she could take off his head before he could even think _bloody hell _let alone speak it. Then an older man with grey wisps of hair and an expensive deep blue suit entered. With him was a slightly younger woman in a skirted suit with a clipboard. The cell leader and his secretary, Spike surmised. The old vampire looked him up and down then spoke a flurry of alien words at him.

"Mr. Nakamura expresses his amazement that you were able to survive the Shadō incident this morning," the secretary explained. "He is curious to know how this was possible as all present were terminated."

"Ah," said Spike, "now, you see, funny thing. I just arrived. Then I was just leavin'. That is, I forgot some… really important materials. That's right. Really important… evidence. Couldn't just waltz in and say 'the Council's here' without proof, right?" He looked to the old gangster for a sense of his reaction as the lady translated. "Bloody lucky's what I was. Another minute and I'd have been the burnt bits off of toast."

The man spoke again briefly.

"Mr. Nakamura requests the location of the Council of Watchers immediately."

"Well, now, see, I had a deal with those Shadō guys. Lots of cash involved. I can't just give it away to anyone who asks. It's valuable stuff." Spike was stalling but he felt the walls beginning to close in around him. He'd feel less confined in a coffin, he thought.

The old vampire gave a long severe spiel of Japanese nonsense after which the secretary turned her expressionless face to Spike. "Mr. Nakamura wishes me to inform you that he believes you placed an explosive device in Shadō building aiding in the infiltration that terminated its leading members. He believes that if you do know the location of the Council it is because you are allied with them. He would also wish you to know that you will happily divulge all your knowledge regarding this."

Spike was surprised that he did in fact have time to think _bloody hell_ before he felt a sharp pain hit the base of his spine. He crumpled to his knees in agony at the precision hit as Nazumi came to his front and regarded him with nothing more than indifference in her eyes. She sliced the side of her hand down into Spike's neck and death suddenly became blacker.

Buffy paced the rooftop as Whistler mulled things over: "That vampire of yours did alright. Now we have their Osaka cell. We need to go higher if we're gonna reach the big boss."

"Right now I'm more concerned with getting Spike out of there and stopping them from getting Shadō off the ground again," Buffy announced.

"Hey." Whistler drew her attention. "You got one night, remember. Now, if we," he indicated Blade and himself, "can destroy Shinkudō, you'll never have to worry about Shadō again."

"He's got a point, Buffy," Xander acknowledged.

"I tend to agree," Giles said.

"We're not gonna bring the whole machine down overnight, Buffy," Willow added.

Buffy surrendered to the general consensus. "Okay. I'll see what I can find out."

"What are you planning to do?" Whistler quizzed.

"I'm going in as this Familiar," she stated.

Whistler couldn't resist the grin that stretched across his face. The girl had balls. "You'll need a glyph," he said.

"No time. I'll work it out. You got wheels?"

"In the street. I got a truck."

"Let's go," Buffy commanded. "Before the real German shows up."

Whistler watched as the Slay-team pulled together and headed for the elevator.

Blade went to him. The old man still had the grin on his face. "You like 'em?"

"They're okay. Remind me of when _I_ was young and stupid."

"You're getting soft in your old age." Blade walked away.

"Yeah? Well you're gettin' an impudent son of a bitch in yours."

Spike opened his eyes and slowly drifted back into the world of the living dead. He stirred and right away felt the reminder of Nazumi's fierce attacks. The base of his back throbbed and his neck still ached on the right side and there was something new – a stretching pulling sensation. Gravity? He regained his vision gradually to see his wrists were tied with metal wire that cut into his skin. A ceiling tile had been removed and he was now suspended from the beams. He looked down to see his torso was bare and he hung a foot from the floor. He was still in the classroom, at the back, with an area cleared around him. He began to feel new sensations of pain and on further inspection he saw his chest was bruised and cut. Someone couldn't wait for him to wake up to get started it seemed. He heard movement outside in the corridor and voices. He picked up the word for 'German' and 'arrived' and he wondered if it was too late for anything to be done. The door opened and the secretary walked in with Nazumi by her side. The dirty little vixen stood stoically before him as the other woman went through the other door to the waiting room. Spike looked over the beautiful little deathmonger again but her eyes never moved from the centre of him. She was a machine. Keeping all of him in sight; watching for any sign of movement she didn't like, no doubt. Spike heard the big security door open in the waiting room and quickly close again. The secretary returned and led her guest to a seat at the desk. Spike felt tired. His body was pulling him downward and the wire pulled him up and it made his muscles ache. His head lolled downward and he tried to rest. Save strength for the right time.

"Where is your glyph?" he heard the secretary ask in her monotone way.

"In a private place," Buffy replied. Spike looked up carefully and felt his heart lift. "I could show you but then we'd just be totally uncomfortable around each other," she finished.

Buffy sat in the chair at the desk in the cold room and looked around casually.

"You are German?" The lady vampire verified.

Oh, crap! … "… Ja."

She gave a nod and went toward the door. The ninja girl moved with her. She stopped as she reached for the handle. "May I ask? What is this weapon?"

"Um…" Buffy racked her brain for something. "It'z called… an Adam!"

"An Adam? How does it work?"

"Um… Uranium core, biomechanical mishmash, it'z all too complicated to pozzibly go into right now. It vill do za trick vor sure, Ja."

The lady frowned at her and pulled the door open. "Mr. Nakamura will be here presently."

"Vot's viz za vampire disco ball? Little late in za year for a sacrifice, izn't it?"

The lady looked at Spike and replied: "Do not worry about that creature. It is a traitor." She walked out with the ninja chick and the door closed.

Buffy shot across from the chair. "Spike – are you ok? Sorry I got you into this mess."

"It's not the first time I've been strung up and made a punch-bag of. 'Least I'm gettin' paid this time," he remarked.

"Um…"

"I'm not gettin' paid this time, am I?"

"This is kind of an on-the-fly mission."

"That's just bleedin' charmin', that is. Oh, well. 'Least it's been a laugh."

"Spike, I know you're in trouble. And I don't think I can keep this act up for long when that Nickermomo guy shows up. I need to find information about this gang. …In a spy way. Anything you can tell me?"

"The big cheese went through there if that's any good." He signalled the second door with a flip of his head. "Stumpy fella with a grey comb-over."

"Right. I'll see if I can find him and listen in. Oh – I won't know what they're saying."

"Use yer cellphone. You can record stuff can't you?"

"Of course. I shoulda thought of that."

"You would have."

"Tomorrow maybe. Okay, stay here. Don't move till I get back." She slipped cautiously out into the corridor.

"Oh, righto," Spike said. "I'll stay here then shall I."

Buffy was standing in a quiet empty corridor. There were vague sounds of activity in nearby rooms. The place looked too clinical and disturbing as a lab might. All the walls around her were made up of metal frames and doors with white plastic panels. She moved deeper into the lab cautiously on the hunch that important areas would be further from the entrance. As she went, the place grew more maze-like in its twisting, turning corridors. She soon came to the corner of another left bend and noticed a room that was different. The walls were all metal and the door was dark wood – like an office door. She drew closer, checking around for sounds of movement in the corridor. From inside the room she heard voices. One was the smart lady that had met her at the reception and the other sounded like a male voice of authority. She wanted to see the face. Buffy took out her cellphone anyway and set the audio recorder running. She held the phone to the door and kept an ear to the halls. No one came. The talking continued for almost five minutes before, suddenly, the brass handle of the door moved. Buffy dashed around the corner as the door opened. Damn, she thought, that had been close. A quick eyeball around the bend confirmed that the voices belonged to the lady and a short round balding man as Spike had described. She stayed behind the corner as they talked a little more and she hurried to save the recording and prepare to mail it. She had to know what they were talking about. If it was useless information she would have to look around and grab files or something and hope for the best. She typed a message: EMERGENCY – Please translate and respond ASAP. Then she mailed the recording to Kiyoshi's number. She changed her settings to silent vibrate and tucked the phone away. Now she could only cross her–

The lady walked around the corner and stopped abruptly at the sight of her. Her mind raced. The first thought that came to her was the toilet. She was lost. But it was a long thought and her body reacted faster. She pushed a hand over the taller woman's lips and seized her and she bungled her into the nearest door. Anything could have been behind it but she was grateful to find it was a store cupboard racked with boxes. The vampiress struggled against her and the second the door closed Buffy took the arm from around her in a swift move, reaching for Mr. Pointy, and staked the wriggling beast through the heart. The sudden burst of heat took Buffy by surprise and she cringed back. The woman lit up like a bonfire – glowing orange – and began to burn to black in sparks like torched wood. She fizzled to crispy blackened bone and crumbled to smoking fragments. Buffy's face contorted at the unusual reaction. These diseased vamps didn't just dust – they burned.

"My God," she muttered. "That's just gross." She straightened herself out as the phone in her pocket began to shake. It was Kiyoshi. They spoke briefly and Buffy called Willow. When she got through she was handed over to Blade. He was keen to hear about the conversation she'd overheard.

"They were talking about sending me – the German – to see Takeshi Shibudabi, or something."

"Shibasaki," Blade growled. "He's big. Practically invented haemonarcotics. He's murdered hundreds to fuel his operations."

"Haemonarcotics?"

"Blood drugs."

"Gross," she said for the second time. "I'll stick with my dumb animal vamps. They're just evil – no sick enterprises."

"What did they say about Shibasaki?"

"Well, they said he'd been put in charge of the Daywalker situation and he needed to meet the German to talk about her weapon. Any of that make sense?"

"Plenty. Anything else?"

"Only that they were sending me to – now I may be getting this wrong – to a place called the nipplebasher district of Tokyo. Takeshi has a haunt there."

"That's everything we need." Blade almost sounded… pleased. "Get out of there."

She was glad to hear it and hung up, looking down at the hot ash on the floor. So much for stealth. Now she was in trouble. But there was something a little cruel in her mind about killing without a fight. It had been the same in Shadō HQ. Even vampires deserved to go out in a blaze of glory. On second thoughts, she had gone out in a blaze. Buffy left the closet and headed back to the meeting room.

Every time Spike tried to loosen the metal wire from his wrists they seemed to dig into his flesh deeper and eventually he gave up trying to free himself. If the Slayer, as she would always be to him, didn't come back soon he was screwed. There was movement in the corridor again. The door unfastened and Nakamura entered with Nazumi. The vixen stood guard inside the doorway. Nakamura scanned the room. Buffy wasn't there. He turned to Spike and spat something Japanese at him. Spike got the drift.

"She went to pee, mate? How should I know? This isn't my crib, is it?"

Nakamura drew a gleaming silver pistol from inside his suit and shot Spike through the sternum.

Spike gasped with the searing heat of the sharp metal as it burned in his chest. His teeth gritted loudly together until the worst of it passed. Nakamura spoke again but Spike couldn't have even formed words if he _had_ a smart comeback. The gun was aimed to his face. Spike didn't close his eyes. Then a buzzer sounded. The vampire boss crossed to the waiting room door and switched on a small screen beside it to see a visitor in reception. Spike saw him trying to page someone then he asked Nazumi where someone was. He figured it was the secretary. Strange that she wasn't around. Nakamura gave Nazumi a signal and she turned her watchful eyes to Spike. The boss then left for reception.

Buffy stepped back into the meeting room as casually as she could just as Nakamura came in through the other door with a new woman. His eyes met Buffy's.

"Ze bazroom iz zo hard to find here, Ja?" she delivered.

The new woman, who was also a westerner, was a broad and tall brunette in a smart suit. She examined Buffy, then Spike. "Vas geschieht hier?"

Spike and Buffy shared the same thought. 'Oh, crap' didn't quite cover it. The German was here with her actual Germanness. Buffy's hand was in her pocket flipping the phone open. Nazumi's hand went to the katana as Nakamura drew his gun on Buffy. A dozen security men showed up in the corridor and from reception. Buffy wanted to tell Xander she felt like General Custer at Little Bighorn.

Nakamura spoke at her severely. Buffy didn't understand. His face grew hot with rage and he slammed her face into the desk with the gun to her temple. "DARE DE ARU KA?!" he repeated.

Then the earthquake hit.

Whistler pushed the pedal through the floor and the huge truck crashed through the reception of the Osaka Center for Pharmaceutical Research. The Scoobs hung on as he tore through the building and smashed through a thick wall kicking up a plaster storm.

Nakamura's head spun at the terrible disaster in the corridor. Buffy cracked her fist against his head, shoved the gun from her face and buried her stake into him. He roared as his insides began to toast. She wheeled around and kicked him back; scattering his sparking remains across the room. Spike groaned as the hot ash rolled into his naked chest and face.

Nazumi sliced her sword out of its bed and cut at the Slayer. Buffy tumbled back and rolled over the desk, feeling the sharp paper-cut of the sword catch her leg.

Blade dropped from the wrecked truck into the dusty corridor and nuked a group of guards with his HK pistols. The bullets tore through their burning corpses and smashed the plastic screens along the walls. Looking into the room that was revealed, he saw Buffy and Nazumi, the hanging vampire, and the westerner. The westerner! The German with the plan to kill the Daywalker! She also saw him and her face turned a ghastly white. He fired a single shot that blew the back of her head out over Spike's stomach.

The Scoobs climbed from the truck. Xander held out one of Blade's compact HK handguns and began firing at the oncoming vampire guards.

Whistler bashed the remnants of his windscreen away with the shotgun and blasted the lab vampires from his perch.

Willow saw Buffy on the floor kicking a desk into a ninja chick who seemed determined to make sliced ham out of her. Buffy wasn't regaining her feet and the ninja was now moving in for a kill. Will called on her power and brought the tiles of the ceiling down around the vampire samurai. It was enough distraction for her then to aim for something heavier. With deep concentration she raised one of the tables in the room and sent it streaming into her. Nazumi was swept and crushed into the whiteboard on the far wall.

Giles and Willow moved through the smashed walls into the meeting room and rushed to Buffy's aid. She was cut badly on her leg and Giles prepared a tourniquet from the sleeve of his shirt.

"Hey. Giles!" Spike called out wearily. "Either get me down or stake me. I'm feelin' like a canvas for Gilbert and George here."

Rupert passed the bandage to Willow and picked the katana up from the floor. He used it to slice through the hanging wire and Spike fell like a sack of bones to the linoleum.

Giles returned to help Buffy stand. "How's the leg?"

"Manageable," she replied as they hobbled to the corridor. Things seemed to have quietened down. Everyone assembled at the mangled grill of Whistler's truck. Spike remained on the floor of the room with his hands tied. Just gonna take a minute, he thought.

"So this is whatya call an undercover operation?" Whistler remarked.

"I didn't drive a truck through the wall," said Buffy.

"That was a rescue," he pointed out aptly.

She gave a smile. "So, are we done here?"

"You're done." Blade's words sounded too exact.

"You're staying?" she asked.

"I can surprise Shibasaki in Tokyo but we gotta level this place so they won't know what we know."

"But they'll know something's up when the German doesn't show." Yes, she'd noticed the woman on the floor with a hole in her skull. That wasn't cool in her book. But there was a lot here that wasn't her field.

"That's _all_ they'll know," Blade remarked.

Giles was a little dubious about the sound of mass carnage. Especially after their perfectly handled first mission. "When you say 'level this place', in what sense exactly–?"

"Two hundred pounds of C-4 and nitrocellulose, a whole bunch of blastin' caps n' a radio detonator," the old man explained like it was a grocery list. He saw the wide eyes of the Slay-team. "Never leave home without 'em."

Whistler unpacked the explosive gear from the storage bay in his truck and the Scoobs went into the facility to help him distribute it. They helped for their own sense of closure. To give Blade and Whistler the chance they needed to finish the Shinkudō off so they could rest assured that the Shadō group would stay buried. Blade watched them disappear down the halls into the bowels of the building. Then he heard footsteps approaching. He pressed himself against the truck's grill as the last of the security detail filed in to protect their company. Three suck-heads. Blade lifted the sword out from his back and went at them. With two swift cuts and a jab they were left in ruins. He swirled the sword in his hand – was about to throw it back over his shoulder – when he heard:

"Daywāka!"

Blade's head craned to the meeting room. Nazumi was standing roughly – her kimono ragged – the katana held ready. Her stony veneer had peeled away to a seething animal state. She made a series of rapid cuts through the air with her weapon and hissed at him. Blade rolled his head and heard the vertebrae crack in his neck.

Nazumi stormed into the corridor and their swords clashed with a spark. She struck like a bolt of lightening, cutting at him with such speed her sword made the air scream. Blade's focus was absolute as she attacked with the instance of electricity. From one swipe to the next he blocked but the katana moved so fast it seemed there were two. He used his defensive strokes to push her attacks downward and she made to stab the point of her blade through his leg. In a flash he raised his foot and trapped the point under it, slashing across her neckline. She released the katana, feinted back to avoid the lash, kicked her sword free and drew herself straight to catch it. Their swords smashed together and Blade shoved her back, spinning to take her legs off – she leapt and used the wall for footing to bring the lethal point down into his skull. Blade whirled out of it and rolled around to her rear. She cut the katana behind her and his arm raised just as it sliced an inch from his armpit. He rammed his elbow down into her shoulder and she lurched off balance. When he came about to attack, her leg flung up to meet him and he was knocked against the wall, landing on his knees. Nazumi was up and attacking. He barred her sword against his as it arched down and he grabbed her fighting wrist with his free hand and swung her back into the room. In the corridor she was a firecracker. Blade needed room to dance.

The vixen turned on him with a flash of silver and his sword came up to intercept the flying shuriken. Now she was p–––ing him off. He moved into the room and prepared for her next move. He'd had enough fun for one evening. He planned to end this as quickly as possible.

Nazumi circled to the centre of the room and reached into the wraps of her kimono. Blade watched her draw out a short sword and he swore to himself. She had more gear than he did!

She prepared to strike him down when a pair of bound hands fell over her head and trapped her neck with a metal wire.

Spike dragged her body back against his with the wire tight around her throat. "This's for bein' such a bitch," he declared with a gleeful glint in his eyes.

She fired her arms back and both katanas knifed into his sides. Spike bellowed and tore the wire through her neck.

Nazumi withered in a gush of flame and rotted away.

Spike was on his knees, carefully extracting the weapons from his body. "Bloody bitch right down to the last, that one."

Blade regarded him with a hint of admiration. He didn't understand why a vampire would help people fight his kind yet this one did so at great pains. Blade was half-human. He wondered if that was the reason he fought or if it was Whistler. Had he been raised by a good man to do the right thing? Had this vampire had similar help? Feeling a touch of anti-climax to the fight, Blade sheathed his sword and went off to help with the explosives.


	7. The Epilogue

**- _On The Council's Secret Service_ -**

**----------**

_The After-mission Mission After-mission Intermission _/ 00**7**

The explosion was phenomenal. The heat-released pressure raised the roof and blew the innards across the entire site. The fireball itself was an amazing mushroom of golden fire and thick smoke. The Osaka cell of Shinkudō was toast. The vampire-killing squad of three men, two girls, a vampire and a half-breed watched it all from the safety of a pedestrian overpass beyond a narrow river half a mile away.

Whistler picked his thumb up from the switch of his radio transmitter and dragged his bad leg around. "That's gotta get some attention. C'mon, Blade. Time to move before the heat shows up."

"What happens now?" Buffy called to the old man.

"Takeshi Shibasaki wants to take us down and he's a direct link to the overlord of Shinkudō. We're going to Tokyo to finish this."

"There's gonna be a lotta blue lights here in about ten minutes," said Blade in warning.

Xander took the HK out of his pants and looked it over. It was a compact tactical Heckler & Koch USP with all the anti-vamp modifications. Exactly like Blade's twin guns only two thirds the size. He flipped the gun around and held the handle out to Blade. "Thanks for the loan. 'Fraid she's spent though."

The Daywalker put a hand up. "Keep it. I like my guns… bigger. And keep your eyes open for suck-heads." With that he strolled away across the overpass.

Xander barely contained his excitement and the old man handed him a fresh magazine of eight hollow-point rounds. Vampire's bane.

Whistler's face creased with concern. "You're gonna be here another day. My advice: get outta the City now. Sure your cover'll hold?"

"We're good."

"Substitute English teachers, right?" He smiled and gave them a nod that was his means of thanks. He turned and followed Blade into the night.

The Scoobs caught his last audible words: "Blood-sucker barbecue's makin' me hungry."

"What time is it?" Buffy asked after a while. She noted that Spike had vanished into the night. She had to thank him later.

Xander checked his cell. "Twelve fifteen."

The trains were likely stopped for the night, she figured.

"Better catch a cab," said Giles.

As the team left the bridge to make their way home, Willow cast a finger to Xander's new toy. "Any ideas how you're gonna get that back to the States?"

----------

The next morning brought the same breakfast routine. Only this time at seven thirty a.m. when the Flying Tomato was packed. Kiyoshi met them at the entrance to their hotel and walked them to the JR station where they took a fifteen-minute train ride to Universal City. Leaving the station there was like walking out into a fantasy world. It was toon-town from Roger Rabbit. A boulevard of colourful buildings – cafés, ice-cream parlours, toy stores and amusement centres. They strolled along toward the large arch that was the entrance to USJ. Xander pointed out the sign in the window of a sweet crepe café. It read: Don't smoking. This led to a short conversation about humorous 'Japlish' – Japanese English.

When they reached the queues for the ticket gates, the gang divided to see who could get them in quickest. Buffy and Kiyoshi found themselves together in one of the shorter lines. A moment of awkward silence fell.

Kiyoshi broke it. "Oh, one last thing about business – my father said to tell you Station X got in touch. This 'Daywalker' you asked about… is a half-breed vampire vigilante named Blade."

Buffy took the info in, realising what Blade was. Half-vampire, half-human. At least he picked the right side to fight on, she considered. And he was the Daywalker. Made sense.

"I guess your Dad isn't too pleased with us right now?" she fished.

Kiyoshi whistled air. "After last night's encore? …I'd stay away from Japan for at least a couple of years."

She cringed. So much for not leaving a mess.

"Now, can we forget about work and have fun?" He gave her that beautiful smile of his.

She returned it. The sun was out in full and the cool breeze was refreshing. It was a beautiful day and she was with beautiful people in a beautiful place. Nothing else mattered for the rest of the day. "I insist!"

* * *

(See the Exciting conclusion to this story as BLADE chases down the Vampire Mafia with help from SPIDER-MAN, DAREDEVIL, and the X-MEN in my story 'MARVEL HEROES'.


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